


It seemed like a nice neighborhood to have bad habits in

by Judybrandtner



Category: Doctor Who (Big Finish Audio), Outlander Series - Diana Gabaldon
Genre: Gotham's Writing Workshop, with a big finish twist
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-06
Updated: 2018-02-06
Packaged: 2019-03-14 17:39:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 821
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13595058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Judybrandtner/pseuds/Judybrandtner
Summary: Claire's thoughts about the new neighbours at Fury Street





	It seemed like a nice neighborhood to have bad habits in

**Author's Note:**

  * For [gotham_ruaidh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/gotham_ruaidh/gifts).



Boston 1950

Frank was glad at the idea of another young English couple moving to Fury Street, people of our own country to socialise with is what he thought I needed. With a toddler running around, socialising wasn’t a priority for me.

John and Charlotte Smith, as they were called, seemed one more out of the people who lived around, a Doctor and a Novelist. Just a little bit odd and secretive.

With them lived Mrs. Smith’s brother, Mr. Pollard, whom no one seemed to know about as no one seemed to ever have put their eyes on him.

Except me…

On some nights, when dreams about the past and nightmares about war had cut off my sleep, going down to our living room to just sit on my favourite chair to drink tea and stare at the lonely stars the street lighting let bright (so different than the star-full skies at Lallybroch),I had seen him, going out their house, wrapped on a heavy coat and a hat, even in the warm weather of Boston’s late spring and just walk around the lonely streets before come back to the house.

‘This is a nice neighbourhood to have bad habits in.’ Frank declared once I told him about. ‘Gossip and rumours will soon appear if he persists on that behaviour.’

And they did, as a wave of crime acts scandalised Boston people, rumours about the unknown Mr. Pollard began to run around. Women started to talk behind and point at the Smiths as did their house chores, commenting on the possibilities of them being involved, and even had once eggs thrown at their windows by some kids.

‘That’s horrible.’ I said, while watching the Smiths clean their windows from our house, a shadow looking outside from one of the upper floor windows.

‘They should have see it coming,’ Frank said behind me, ‘they should stop being so withdrawn. Get along with other people.’

‘There’s nothing wrong with being withdrawn.’ I said to him.

‘Well, you must know what you’re talking about, don’t you?’

Few nights later, sleepless again, I saw Mr. Pollard leaving the house and, in a sudden impulse, I put on my shoes and follow him. I walked few yards behind him until we ended up on a nearby park, where he took off his coat and hat, a loud gasp coming out of me as I could see his features were not human.

‘Oh, please, don’t be scare of me.’ Mr. Pollard said to me, ‘I’m not going to do you any harm.’

‘Who…what are you?’ I asked me

‘My name C’rizz, I’m an Eutermesan from the planer Bortresoye. Pleased to meet you,’ he answered, ‘or at least that’s how The Doctor and Charlie tell people when they meet them.’

‘You’re from another planet?’ I said, ‘But your sister, she looks…’

‘Well, Charlie is obviously not my sister, and she isn’t either married with The Doctor. We’re travelling companions, we’re just stuck here meanwhile The Doctor fixes up something on the TARDIS, our ship.

‘Are they from another planet too?’ I asked, sitting at his side on a bench.

‘The Doctor is; Charlie was born here, on Earth, but on another time, she was living on 1930 when The Doctor met her.’ C’rizz told her. ‘It’s what The Doctor does, he travels through time and space, sometimes accompanied by people he meets on the way.’

‘Is that your story? You met him and decided to join him?’ I said

He told her then his story, how his family was decimated by war, the cult he joined and left after meeting his wife and how he later lost her, something moved inside me, the recognition of his feelings and the understanding of the reasons he was driven to run away with his friends.

‘You seem really understanding for someone from this time and place,’ he said, ‘not trying to be rude, just The Doctor told me this is to far on time to the first contacts between human and other universe species. That people thinks that aliens and time travel are just absurd stories.’

‘Well, I understand your absurd story, because I have an absurd story of my own.’ I said, and then I told him, about the magic stones at the top of the Fairy Hill, Lallybroch, Leoch, my own war scars and about all, about Jamie. It felt good talk with someone who knew how it felt, being an alien on a World you feel you don’t fit at all.

As the light of day appeared on the sky, he accompanied to my house, before disappear through the shadows of his door. A week later, the house was empty, no trace of when the mysterious Smiths and the even more mysterious Mr. Pollard had gone as no one has seen them loading their belongings and drive away.

I hope they’re OK, wherever, or whenever, they are.


End file.
